Title: Y-Ann-Dere

Summary: Nothing will separate us this time, My Love.

Characters: Leon, Ann

Genre: Horror?

There was a girl lying limply in my Dad's arms.

Dad returned from an emergency request for reinforcements. The Winged Sharks had invaded a neighboring barony. Unfortunately, there was only one survivor by the time he arrived. Secretly, I was relieved he was too late. I did not want him to be in any battle in which everyone died.

It was odd though. He also mentioned that no pirates survived. It was a rare occurrence for both sides to be wiped out. But I suppose it mattered not.

The only remaining concern was in regards to the girl's housing; she had nowhere to return to. Our territory was also too poor to have an orphanage, thanks to Zola's mismanagement of our funds. We couldn't send the girl to the capital either, as the orphanage there was past capacity due to the constant border skirmishes.

With no good options, we tabled the discussions for the night. I tucked the girl in Jenna's bed for the night. It was the only remaining bed without a male presence. I doubted she would appreciate waking up to a man's presence give her ordeals.

The morning after, I walked up to Jenna's room with breakfast and hesitantly knocked. When there was no response, I let myself in.

She was still asleep with a fitful expression. She must have been having a nightmare. The poor girl.

I set the meal on the nightstand, and sat by her side. With little else to do, I rubbed the back of her hand. I hoped she could feel some support.

Surprisingly, my gesture woke her up. Or maybe it was not that much of a surprise. She was likely just not exhausted and did not come in with a coma.

"Where am I?" the girl groaned.

"You're in the Bartfort Barony. My father rescued you from the pirate raid on your village."

"Bartfort?" She asked weakly.

"Here, drink some water," I said gently as I grabbed the glass I had brought along and held it to her lips. She had the sense to slowly slip rather than gulp.

"Thank you..."

"The name's Leon Fou Bartfort, and you?"

Her head snapped towards me. There were tears in her eyes, but she didn't seem to be expressing her despair. She looked at me hopefully.

"Ann. My name is Ann."

For some reason, Ann latched onto me. She would become upset if I was separated from her for too long. We had to allow her to sleep in my room for her to get a restful night of sleep. Given our age, everyone thought it would be okay for now.

I doubt it was healthy for her to be so attached to a stranger, but we were left with little choice. It would have been too cruel to turn her away.

The only positive from all this was that we had an extra set of hands to work the fields. She had a surprising affinity for magic and used it to great affect to speed up planting and harvesting. It looked like we would have enough productivity to justify housing her.

Zola and her family came to the island. She found out we had taken on Ann. She was displeased money would have to be spent to take care of Ann. Of course when we showed how much more money we gathered from the improved harvests, she got angrier that she didn't receive more Dia.

I bit my lip in anger as Dad simply accepted the situation for what it was. It was a foregone conclusion that we would see an increase in Zola's allowance. The world was dominated by cruel women like her.

Ann gently held my hand and said, "It'll all be okay, Lea."

"Okay, Ann."

I didn't believe her, but agreed for her sake.

Lately my dreams were filled with fire and ash. There was always the sound of a crying girl in the background. I would never find the source within a single night, but each night, the sound grew louder.

This night felt different. Based on how loud the sobbing was, I felt she was near.

Looking around, I saw a burnt down house. It had a lawn of charred plants leading up to an empty doorway.

Walking through, I passed several blackened and shattered furniture. The sound seemed to be emanating from above.

Finding the stairs, the steps groaned under my weight. The crying also became muffled. I continued upwards.

Looking down the barren hall, there was only one door left standing. Standing in front of it, I saw lettering on it.

Pushing the door open, I saw a room untouched by the destruction outside.

"Olivia?" I asked hesitantly.

I then woke up.

That morning as I was waking up, I saw Ann thumbing her bracelet. It looked remarkably familiar. I initially thought it was the Saintess's bracelet but quickly dismissed the thought.

For one thing, the bracelet was the wrong color from what I remembered about the game. For another, the Winged Sharks had the necklace (where was the damn thing anyways).

It was likely a family heirloom, or her family was devout. Fat lot of luck faith brought her, but I suppose when left with nothing, faith was the only thing you could rely on.

I decided to not question her about it. There was no need to drag up bad memories by being overly curious.

In the coming weeks, Dad would often have to travel to the capital. It was odd since he had no reason to be there. The only person he would have to meet was Zola, and I knew he cared little for being in the same room as that harpy. I also doubted he was talking with the royal court. He was far too low a level to have the number of audiences necessary to account for the number of visits.

After a month of his behavior, he didn't come home as scheduled. Only a letter was passed to Mom. Ann and I weren't told the details, but we were told to wash up with the new artisan soaps Dad got from the capital.

"Mom, is Dad sick," I said with a thick throat.

"No, not at all!" Mom said quickly.

"Mom, please don't lie to me."

"Your Dad is just fine. It's Zola. She got ill recently, and whatever she caught recently spread on to her children and personal servant. It's probably nothing, but we don't want to risk your Dad spreading it to you and Ann."

I didn't ask any further. I could see the worry in her eyes. If the disease was capable of transmitting while Dad was asymptomatic, we were likely infected already.

Rather than push for more information, I gave Mom a hug. The tension I felt from her was palpable.

"Now you go on and wash up. Supper will be ready in a few."

Wordlessly, I picked up Collin and walked to the washroom. Ann had just finished cleaning Finley and herself.

"Everything will be okay."

"Ann?"

"Only Zola and her ilk will be affected," she said with certainty. Something about the way she said it rubbed me the wrong way.

"What makes you so sure?"

"The wicked will receive their just dues in time. They always do."

It was more of her faith. The creepiness was something I chalked up to Ann's fervent belief.

A couple of nights later, Mom gathered all the children into her bed. She didn't want us out of her sight.

I guess Zola and/or her kids died. I doubted Dad got sick since she would have been crying.

Somehow, I got the feeling that Dad would be fine. The thought should've been a relief, but it brought a chill down my spine.

As Ann held onto me in her sleep, intrusive questions began to fester in the dark recesses of my mind.

I shook off the my paranoia. I was letting the stress and imagination run off. There was no way for a child to be the cause.

After a few months, Dad's quarantine was lifted. He came home with a bundle of gifts for everyone and brought back both Jenna and Nicks from their prep school. While it was a celebration, I could see my parents were still tense. Part of me already knew that all of Zola's capital-side household had died. Dad's spending was indicative enough that money would no longer be an issue.

Even though the parasite would no longer be a part of our lives, I still felt sick to my stomach. The thought of people wasting away until death was an unpleasant thought.

Of the children, only Nicks, Jenna, and I weren't in a full celebratory mood. Looking at Ann, I wondered if she knew. She was the same age as me so she should be mature enough to understand. But then again, I had the benefit of being an adult mentally.

Dad received a large sum of money from the elves. I assumed it was hush money. It was likely a disease born from their side, and they wanted to keep the affair quiet.

My mind initially went to some STD, but I waved it off soon after. That would not explain why Rutart and Merce had also passed away.

Regardless of my speculations, the hushed talks settled my nerves. Ann's creepy words were just that. She wasn't at fault.

While most of us had gotten over the deaths, Jenna had not. She had been around long enough to believe Zola was a suitable role model. Zola and Merce's death had soured her mood greatly.

Jenna mood was also worsened by the fact that Dad refused to buy her a personal servant despite receiving a large sum from them. He did not want to risk Jenna's health in another incident. Despite how reasonable he sounded, Jenna did not see reason.

She took her foul mood out on Nicks and me since she had been taught we were worth less than the dirt we stood on. How much of that was Zola's influence or the common perception of the world was hard to say.

In any case, her latest tirade involved her new sleeping arrangements... again. Due to Ann's needs, we had reorganized the room distribution. Nicks and Collins were together in one of the double rooms. Jenna and Finley occupied my old room. Ann and I occupied the private room which used to be Jenna's.

I felt it was the one time she had a somewhat reasonable complaint since she lost her room and privacy, but it was a minor thing since we were in the process of moving into the main manor with the death of Zola. The process was only taking so long since we were sterilizing the building for our safety.

Today's rant was filled more vitriol. For once she was directly insulting Ann, and it rankled my senses.

"How is it fair that Leon gets to lay with his whore daily while I'm not allowed a personal servant? It's scandalous in both situations alone!"

"Jenna, stop calling Ann a whore. It's not right for you to do so," I said while holding in my true retort. How Jenna could not see wanting a personal sex slave was more whorish or pathetic was beyond me.

"And why not? Is that not what she is? A nobody sleeping her way into nobility. Just another whore sleeping for her next paycheck."

"Jenna, we're ten. What sleeping Ann and I do is just that. Besides, you're misconstruing need for desire. Ann's been through enough, and if letting her stay in the same bed is enough to keep her calm, I find little reason to deny her that comfort."

"And when you get older? At what point does your charity become less than innocent? Are you going to push her out of your bed or will she guilt you into marrying her? And if you reciprocate from the get go, is the result not the same?"

I paused at that. As much as I wanted to deny on principle, she had a point. Not that Ann was trying to bed her way into our family, but that whatever this was had to end at some point. It wasn't healthy to keep indulging Ann like this.

"It's complicated. Can we just table this for later? Preferably when we have to decide on our new rooms?"

For once, Jenna didn't shoot a veiled insult. She gave a complicated look before nodding.

Walking away, I saw Ann come in with a basket of cleaned laundry.

Looking around, I noticed I was in front of Olivia's room. I was having one of these dreams again.

I once more heard sobs behind the door. Opening the door, I saw the room was still untouched, but there was no sign of the girl. The sound of the door opening must have scared her into silence.

"Olivia?" I hesitantly asked.

There was a slight rustle. Looking in the direction of the noise, I saw a wardrobe.

"Olivia, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you," I said gently as I approached the wardrobe.

The only response I received was a sniffle.

"I'm opening the wardrobe now."

As I pulled the door, I saw a girl curled up in it. She looked remarkably similar to Ann. The main difference was that Olivia's hair was more golden compared to Ann's.

"Lea?"

Rather than the hopeful look Ann would give, she gave me a fearful one.

That was when the dream ended.

I awoke to the sound of screaming. It was coming from the girls' room. Rushing out, I saw my brothers and Finley crowding the door. Nicks was busy trying to calm Finley down, but she was not the source of the scream.

Looking through the doorway, I saw my parents fretting over Jenna. Mom was gently rocking her back and forth.

My Dad was was constantly reassuring her that it was just a nightmare. That there was nothing to fear.

Looking around, I noticed only one person was absent. An old worry came to my memory. Was Ann in my bed when I had woken up?

I rushed back to my room. Looking in, I saw she was still in bed. However, she was not asleep. There was constant metal sound as she tapping her bracelet in a rhythmic pattern. The metallic ring in the darkness was too eerie for my liking.

"Ann?"

"Lea, where did you go?"

"I had to check on my sister. Her screams woke up everyone."

"Your sister had a nightmare?"

Why did it sound more like a confirmation than a question? I shook my head.

"It seems like it."

"I had a nightmare too," she said as she opened the sheets for me to get back in.

I wordlessly went back to bed.

Jenna never spoke of her nightmare to us, but it must have been horrible. She shied away from the men of the village. Whenever we had to do errands that required talking to men, either Nicks or I had to do the talking.

We all found it concerning but had little idea what to do about the situation. Mom and Dad were on edge because of the recent events with Zola. While it was something completely different, they feared it was another bad omen.

We ultimately decided to leave our shack early. There must have been something haunting the land as of late. Hearing the word haunting made me immediately pack my bags. I could never deal with the idea of ghosts.

My family rented out the top floor of the inn in the village.

The situation was deteriorating. Jenna had developed insomnia and was losing her appetite. Her health was getting worse by the day, and she was likely to get sick at this rate.

I turned to the only person I think could help.

"Ann, is there anything you can do?" I asked nicely.

"What do you believe I can do about the situation?"

"I don't know, but you've experienced nightmares too. No one knows how to help Jenna. I don't know who else to turn to."

"Anything for you, Lea."

My desire to see Jenna get better was greater than my fear of being right.

I was dreaming again. The little girl in the wardrobe was repeatedly muttering my nickname.

"Olivia? It's not safe here."

"..."

"Let me get you to someplace safe," I said while reaching out my hand. Instead of taking it, she bit me as hard as she could. It was still a weak bite.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Olivia."

I did not hear her response as I woke up.

During breakfast, Jenna finally came down. She looked haggard, but she was finally getting better.

Ann gave me a pleasant smile.

I couldn't deny it any longer. There was something wrong with her, and I dared not do anything to displease her.

AN:

1) Comments on the previous chapter in case you didn't read the updates. The plot twist is more of an alternate ending. If it felt like it was a slapped on the rest of the chapter that was because it was. Basically if I were to make a chapter based on the plot twist, it would come out very similarly to the initial concept with a few minor changes to up the weird/psycho vibes. So it was more a two-snippet chapter, but me being too lazy typing up a near copy chapter. Final remarks on the plot twist are that the Angelica from that timeline is one where Olivia paired with anyone except Julius since Leon semi implies she gets dismissed regardless of the route (I could be misremembering this though). Angelica dislikes Leon because of what he represents.

2) I kind of expected most people not to enjoy the previous chapter based on the pairing alone. I'm glad people took a chance on it. Most said it was written well and better than expected, but the pairing was just something that made such a story infeasible for a long term story. I kind of agree because making the five heirs decent stretches their canon personalities quite a bit.

3) Went to a horror museum. You can thank that for this chapter. Not sure if I got the horror aspect down though. Though, I think I got some Silent Hill vibes. Which is weird since I've not touched any of the games.

4) Not sure how I would progress this. The way I see it is either Leon tries to exorcise Ann and fails badly, or he goes full blown kill the heirs mode after being mind broken.

5) Leon in this is reincarnated, but could easily be changed to non-reincarnated with a few minor changes to some sections. I'm not sure which would be scarier to write since an adult perspective has the benefit of pointing out what's wrong while a child perspective can imagine some pretty horrific things.